I received this inquiry: In lesson 18a we have a question about one of the samples given. The topic is indirect objects (dative case). The following was the first sample: “My father gave the car to my brother.” From our understanding, “brother” in the previous sentence is the object of the preposition instead of an indirect object. If the sentence had been written, “My father gave my brother the car,” then “brother” would be an indirect object. The question we have is, does the grammar concerning indirect objects change when doing latin? Thank you for your time on this concern.
Here is my reply:
Hi!
This is a common confusion. This time, it’s English’s fault. 🙂
There are two ways to construct this sentence.
We could say, “My father gave the car to my brother.” We could also say, “My father gave my brother a car.”
In both cases, the brother gets the car. In English, though, brother is an object of the preposition (first sentence) and an indirect object (second sentence).
Latin is easier. Either way, it is in the dative case. This video may help:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIyyVAQknkw
Let me know if you need more help!
Dwane
